The Future of Consumerist

Over the last twelve years, Consumerist has been a steadfast proponent and voice on behalf of consumers, from exposing shady practices by secretive cable companies to pushing for action against dodgy payday lenders. Now, we’re joining forces with Consumer Reports, our parent organization, to cultivate the next generation of consumer advocacy.

Stay tuned as Consumerist’s current and future content finds its home as a part of the Consumer Reports brand. In the meantime, you can access existing Consumerist content below, and we encourage you to visit Consumer Reports to read the latest consumer news.

Steve says American Express sent him an off-putting letter letting him know it could refuse to authorize his charge at any time. He writes:

I received my Delta Skymiles American Express card invoice which included an “important legal notice”. Among the four pages of changes to the terms, I thought this one was most disturbing:

“We reserve the right to deny any request for authorization for a Charge, even if the Charge would not cause you to exceed your credit line or Cash Advance limit and even if your Account is current and not in default.”

They also advised they were increasing my credit limit by 40%. Which is ironic, since they state above that they may or may not let me use that credit regardless of how timely I am with my payments.

Good to know that AmEx is claiming the rights to make you look like a freeloading loser at restaurants when the waiter returns your card to you with a solemn head shake. I imagine the warning only applies to nefarious card uses, such as online poker and The Twilight Sage: New Moon ticket purchases, but you never know.